10 Titles on Tap thru 2021-22, Football and Men's Basketball Get New Homes

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. --- The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) announced a four-year span of championship hosts sites for all divisions on Tuesday afternoon, and while there certainly is change for some very familiar sports to ODAC and Division III fans, one thing remains constant --- the ODAC, its member schools, and the City of Salem will be busy.

The NCAA selected 10 championship events from the fall of 2018 thru the spring of 2022 to be hosted either by the ODAC or one of its member schools in five different sports. Guilford College, Randolph-Macon College, and Roanoke College will also be in the hosting business along with ODAC partners Greensboro Sports Commission, Greensboro Aquatic Center, and the City of Salem.

With the announcement of a new set of championships also comes the departure of a pair of staple events. The Division III football championship, better known as the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, will be competed for the 25th time in Salem in December 2017. But that could be its final showing in Virginia's Championship City as the Stagg Bowl will move to Shenandoah, Texas, for two years before a two-year assignment in Canton, Ohio, at the facility associated with the National Football League (NFL) Hall of Fame. The Stagg has been played in Salem every year since 1993.

The Division III men's basketball semifinals and finals also find a new home after March 2018 with those three contests moving to Fort Wayne, Ind., for a four-year stretch. Salem and the ODAC have hosted the semifinals each year since 1996 and their subsequent national championship games save for an all-divisions trip to Atlanta in 2013 where all three title games were conducted.

"I am pleased that Salem's contribution to the experience of Division III student-athletes will continue in the next championship cycle," explained ODAC Commissioner Brad Bankston. "The run hosting 20-plus football and men's basketball championships each is unparalleled in our division. The City's contribution to the Division III championship experience set a high bar that has influenced the championship atmosphere and bettered the experience for student-athletes across the country."

Experience hosting championships has not only opened new doors for the league and Salem to host events, but also for the ODAC's member schools. Three institutions will have direct involvement in championship hosting thru the 2021-22 season. Roanoke is slotted for four assignments. RC'snew Cregger Center will be host venue for the Division III women's basketball semifinals and finals in 2019 and 2021, partnering with the ODAC and Salem to welcome the sport to the Valley for the first time. Roanoke will also open its doors to two more years of women's lacrosse hosting responsibilties as the 2021 and 2022 events return to Donald J. Kerr Stadium. The trio host that championship this spring at Kerr Stadium.

The ODAC and Salem will add two more years of hosting Division III softball to the 12 eight-team events it has previously produced. The James I. Moyer Sports Complex will serve as the host venue in 2021 and 2022.

Women's lacrosse has an affinity for Virginia and ODAC schools as Randolph-Macon takes charge of its first national championship hosting responsibility in 2019. R-MC, in conjunction with Richmond Region Tourism, will welcome four squads to Day Field on R-MC's campus in Ashland.

Guilford adds to its hosting platform in 2021 as it joins forces with Visit Winston-Salem and JDL Fast Track for the indoor track championships. GC has previously been the host for the Division III men's golf championship, a responsibility it also holds in 2018.

The remaining two championships on the list of 10 will also be conducted in Greensboro. The ODAC continues its partnership with the Greensboro Sports Commission and Greensboro Aquatic Center in hosting Division III men's and women's swimming and diving in 2019 and 2020. The trio combined to host this same event in 2016 as well as the ODAC Swimming Championships since 2012.

"Our institutions have been outstanding stewards for Division III championships in previous years and I expect that tradition to continue," added Bankston. "Roanoke and Guilford have both had successful experiences, most recently with Roanoke providing an excellent venue for the 2016 men's and women's soccer championships that were previously slated for an entirely different location. Randolph-Macon joins them with an opportunity to showcase yet another of our fine institutions on the national stage."

The NCAA received more than 3,000 bid submissions from NCAA member schools, conferences, sports commissions and cities vying to host predetermined rounds for 84 of the NCAA’s 90 championships. A total of 613 sites were awarded for this cycle. The respective NCAA sports committees and the divisional championships cabinets/committees reviewed the bid proposals and selected the sites.

For more information on all of the NCAA championship sites awarded, log on to www.ncaa.com.